1 Samuel 15:23

15:23 For rebellion is like the sin of divination,

and presumption is like the evil of idolatry.

Because you have rejected the word of the Lord,

he has rejected you as ¹  king.”

1 Samuel 15:28

15:28 Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day and has given it to one of your colleagues who is better than you!

1 Samuel 16:14

David Appears before Saul

16:14 Now the Spirit of the Lord had turned away from Saul, and an evil spirit ²  from the Lord tormented him.

1 Samuel 16:1

Samuel Anoints David as King

16:1 The Lord said to Samuel, “How long do you intend to mourn for Saul? I have rejected him as king over Israel. ³  Fill your horn with olive oil and go! I am sending you to Jesse in Bethlehem, ⁴  for I have selected a king for myself from among his sons.” ⁵ 

1 Samuel 11:13

11:13 But Saul said, “No one will be killed on this day. For today the Lord has given Israel a victory!”

1 Samuel 11:1

Saul Comes to the Aid of Jabesh

11:1 ⁶ Nahash ⁷  the Ammonite marched ⁸  against Jabesh Gilead. All the men of Jabesh Gilead said to Nahash, “Make a treaty with us and we will serve you.”

Isaiah 9:7

9:7 His dominion will be vast ⁹ 

and he will bring immeasurable prosperity. ¹⁰ 

He will rule on David’s throne

and over David’s kingdom, ¹¹ 

establishing it ¹²  and strengthening it

by promoting justice and fairness, ¹³ 

from this time forward and forevermore.

The Lord’s intense devotion to his people ¹⁴  will accomplish this.

Isaiah 37:35

37:35 I will shield this city and rescue it for the sake of my reputation and because of my promise to David my servant.”’” ¹⁵ 

[15:23]  ¹ tn Or “from [being].”

[16:14]  ² tn Or “an injurious spirit”; cf. NLT “a tormenting spirit.” The phrase need not refer to an evil, demonic spirit. The Hebrew word translated “evil” may refer to the character of the spirit or to its effect upon Saul. If the latter, another translation option might be “a mischief-making spirit.”

[16:1]  ³ tc The Lucianic recension of the Old Greek translation includes the following words: “And the Lord said to Samuel.”

[16:1]  ⁴ map For location see Map5 B1; Map7 E2; Map8 E2; Map10 B4.

[16:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “for I have seen among his sons for me a king.”

[11:1]  ⁶ tc 4QSam^a and Josephus (Ant. 6.68-71) attest to a longer form of text at this point. The addition explains Nahash’s practice of enemy mutilation, and by so doing provides a smoother transition to the following paragraph than is found in the MT. The NRSV adopts this reading, with the following English translation: “Now Nahash, king of the Ammonites, had been grievously oppressing the Gadites and the Reubenites. He would gouge out the right eye of each of them and would not grant Israel a deliverer. No one was left of the Israelites across the Jordan whose right eye Nahash, king of the Ammonites, had not gouged out. But there were seven thousand men who had escaped from the Ammonites and had entered Jabesh-gilead.” This reading should not be lightly dismissed; it may in fact provide a text superior to that of the MT and the ancient versions. But the external evidence for it is so limited as to induce caution; the present translation instead follows the MT. However, for a reasonable case for including this reading in the text see the discussions in P. K. McCarter, I Samuel (AB), 199, and R. W. Klein, 1 Samuel (WBC), 103.

[11:1]  ⁷ sn The name “Nahash” means “serpent” in Hebrew.

[11:1]  ⁸ tn Heb “went up and camped”; NIV, NRSV “went up and besieged.”

[9:7]  ⁹ tc The Hebrew text has לְםַרְבֵּה (lÿmarbeh), which is a corrupt reading. לם is dittographic; note the preceding word, שָׁלוֹם (shalom). The corrected text reads literally, “great is the dominion.”

[9:7]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and to peace there will be no end” (KJV and ASV both similar). On the political and socio-economic sense of שָׁלוֹם (shalom) in this context, see the note at v. 6 on “Prince of Peace.”

[9:7]  ¹¹ tn Heb “over the throne of David, and over his kingdom.” The referent of the pronoun “his” (i.e., David) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:7]  ¹² tn The feminine singular pronominal suffix on this form and the following one (translated “it” both times) refers back to the grammatically feminine noun “kingdom.”

[9:7]  ¹³ tn Heb “with/by justice and fairness”; ASV “with justice and with righteousness.”

[9:7]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “the zeal of the Lord.” In this context the Lord’s “zeal” refers to his intense devotion to and love for his people which prompts him to vindicate them and to fulfill his promises to David and the nation.

[37:35]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “for my sake and for the sake of David my servant.”